Lucy Atkins: Five ways to ... Improve your skin

1 Protect yourself "The one thing that will make your skin look unhealthy and old - and could give you skin cancer - is sun exposure," says Dr Tim Clayton, a consultant dermatologist at Broadgreen University Hospital, Liverpool, and spokesperson for the British Skin Foundation. "If you do one thing to improve your skin, use an SPF 15+ cream every day."

2 Stop smoking Smoking gives you wrinkles, particularly around the mouth, because it interferes with proteins in your skin that switch on and off the genes that control ageing.

3 Cut down on booze Heavy drinking can make your blood vessels prominent, and exacerbates rosacea, a condition that causes red spots on your cheeks and nose. It also dehydrates your skin, making it flaky and generally unhealthy-looking.

4 Moisturise daily Air-conditioning and heating systems dry your skin out, making it appear rough. Moisturising regularly will improve your skin's condition. There is a baffling array of products out there but "none is particularly better than the other", says Clayton. Try a range to find one you like. The only ingredient shown in large-scale clinical trials to improve the appearance of wrinkles is retinoic acid, a derivative of vitamin A, so look for "retinoids", "retinol" or "retinoic acid" on the packet. Also, try to use cleansers instead of soap. Soap is an irritant, while cleansers are gentler and more protective.

5 Get enough sleep and water and eat a varied diet People talk about "beauty sleep" but in reality skin repair is a complex process unrelated to sleep. However, a chronic lack of sleep may make your under-eyes puffy, dry out your skin and exacerbate problems such as acne or eczema. Drinking gallons of water is not the miracle cure that beauty pages may have you believe, but eight glasses a day could make it look plumper and healthier; dehydration gives skin a sunken, flaky and tired look. There is no definitive evidence that food supplements improve skin appearance, but it stands to reason that if you are healthy overall, your skin will reflect this.